Israel says relations restored with Senegal after spat

JERUSALEM – Israel says it will return its ambassador to Senegal following a diplomatic spat with the West African nation over a U.N. resolution condemning Israeli settlements.

The office of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said ties were restored after he met with Senegalese President Macky Sall in Liberia on the sidelines of the Economic Community of West African States summit.

It said Israel will immediately return its ambassador to Senegal, which will support Israel's nomination for observer status at the African Union.

Senegal, along with New Zealand, co-sponsored a U.N. Security Council resolution in December condemning Jewish settlement construction in the West Bank and east Jerusalem, territory Israel captured in the 1967 war that Palestinians claim for a state. The move prompted Netanyahu to recall ambassadors from both countries.